conversation continues you can also find us on twitter @ajconsiderthis. we'll see you next time. >> >> 9 o'clock in the morning in kiev ukraine. despite the thick smoke there's a truce between the government of ukraine and opposition protesters. this comes after days of deadly violence, and now some are questioning whether it will hold. russian punk rockers pussy riot are punished for protesting, why they were publicly beaten at the olympics in sochi. the government warning airliners to be on the look out for passengers with explosives in

their shoes on u.s. flights. >> things looked darn good and mother nature threw herself in. >> crayfish suffer in the cold. >> hi, welcome to al jazeera america. i'm thomas drayton. we start in ukraine. 26 people were killed in kiev during protests. as you can see from the live images, there's a lot of activity going on. president viktor yanukovych indicated that the two sides will reopen peace talks. jennifer glasse is in kiev.

>> the barricades were already burns as the police tried to force them from here. hope is negotiations can avoid blood shed. the violence left 25 dead. hundreds injured. this paramedic said she treated 50 people. >> yesterday was a nightmare. many people were injured from grenades. there were people of plastic and glass. glass is the dangerous. the clashes appear to have strengthened the resolve of people in the square. numbers have been swelling. double since tuesday. they are reinforcing barricades. police may have pushed them back. they are determined and undaunted. >> as night falls the people are preparing for the worst. there's piles of rocks. there's molotov cocktails. the barricades have been set alight ready for what might

happen next. >> as the protesters dug in, so did the government. they threatened to crackdown on extremist groups and they installed a new army chief. >> we go not know what to do now. we can't ceasefire. there can't be truce after many deaths. for now there is one. it's not certain a deal would make the difference here. >> this violence in ukraine provoked sharp international criticism. western leaders are asking them to find a peaceful resolution. the white house is ready to action. >> shortly after arriving in

mexico president obama shifted the focus to another part of the world - ukraine. >> protests turned violent and deadly. >> the united states condemns in the strongest terms the violence that has taken place there. we have been engaged with our european partners and the government and the opposition, to assure that violence ends. the president makes sure the expectations of the u.s. are clear. >> we expect the ukrainian government to show restraint, to not resort to violence in dealing with peaceful protesters, and we expect peaceful protesters to remain peaceful >> leaders from around the world, including france, germany and the european union echoing the condemnation of the crackdown. >> the united states will engage with all sides in the dispute, and ultimately our interest is

to make sure people can express their own desires. >> the administration has started applying pressure on ukraine. a senior state department official announced the u.s. initiated sanctions, banning visas for members of the ukrainian government, who are responsible for ordering or directing human rights abuses. >> mike viqueira at the white house. >> the violence at kiev is felt in russia. members of the ukrainian team to wear black armbands to honour those mixed the russians would not allow that to happen but they praised them for competing in sochi. >> pussy riot was back protesting at the olympic games. this time they were roughed up by russian cossacks.

>> this is the fourth day that the two pussy riot members have been in sochi, and the fourth day they've had a tangle with the authorities, on tuesday they spent hours in political tension and wednesday this happened. they made their way to the port in sochi, with supporters, ready for a punk protest performance. on hand to stop them were several police officers and a cossack with pepper spray and a whip. what pussy riot were doing is technically illegal. all protests is banned unless it's plied for and is -- applied for is is taking place in a sanctioned protest zone, away from the olympic park. it pussy riot know this and are

aware they are running the risk of prosecution. they seem intent on using the winter olympics as a statement for their brand of protest theatre, no matter what the punishment may be. >> the women gained international attention in 2012 for performing an anti-putin song in russian's main cathedral. they were charged with hooliganism and released after serving half their sentences. >> we go to washington about a security alert. >> there's reports about a security alert from the department of homeland security. it concerns flights coming into the u.s. from overseas. the concern is about a possible shoe bomb attack. the department of homeland security would not confirm the reports, saying it shares information with airlines as it learns new information, and the

department says "it continues to adjust security to fit ever-evolving environments", reuters says there's no information pointing to a specific shoe bomb plot, but the alert is issued out of an abundance of caution, intelligence gathered by the department of homeland security. concern about shoe bombs began after 2001, when richard reid tried to light his shoes on fire on a flight from paris to miami. passengers subdued reid before he could light the fuse on the bomb. since then passengers in the u.s. have been taking off their shoes to go through screening before getting on flights. passengers overseas coming to the u.s. may see a lot of extra scrutiny on their shoes. there are reports that the latest alert is not related to

concerns over the sochi winter olympics. there has been a number of travel alerts issued because of the olympics in sochi. one was concern over the fact that there was explosive material put in a toothpaste container. the u.s. banned any carry ons, including gel, liquids or powders on flight from the u.s. to russia. that is during the sochi winter olympics. apparently there's a broader concern about a shoe bomb attempt, and that prompted the latest alert. >> lisa stark in washington. passengers can expect longer security line, with additional measures taken to search for hidden explosives. >> well, today it will be messy for many people, starting up to the north we are looking at a new storm system.

this is different to the other storm systems we have seen, bringing the winter conditions. this one is also bringing severe weather with it. this is what we are looking at. this is the beginning of the storm. it will be a bigger one as we go towards the rest of the day on thursday. up to the forth we are looking at winter lake conditions, blizzard conditions, and it will continue towards ontario, as we go from thursday to friday. snow, how about 12 to 16 or 18 inches of snow. visibility coming down low. we'll see the wind at 50 miles per hour or -- minneapolis things will go down to minus 5 by the time we get to monday. it's not the lowest we'll see. it could be lower than that. the rain continues up here towards the north-west. we'll see a little bit of flooding. this is not as bad as we have

seen over the last couple of days. we are looking at flood warning and watches, we'll see 48 degrees. spotty sun coming in and out, but not as heavy as in the last couple of weeks there. down to southern california, how about 84 degrees for los angeles. it will be nice compared to the rest of the country dealing with cold weather and snow. it will continue through monday, we are seeing rain to the north, but for texas you have been warmed out. san antonio 82. dallas 86 degrees, slowly rising. >> emotional reunions for koreans separated after the war, preparing to meet family they have not seen in decades, and in some cases relatives they have never met. the cold winter causing a

hortage of delicacy. a 20-year-old college student chose scientific breakthrough could change the way some cancers are diagnosed.

>> welcome back. three al jazeera journalists have been detained in egypt over 50 days. fit ner reports from london where protesters rallied outside the egyptian embassy demanding release. >> germans, politicians and other concerned citizens gathered outside an embassy before a trial, some including al jazeera journalists, begins. >> mohamed fadel fahmy, mohammed badr and peter greste are into the second month without being charged. al jazeera network arabic

journalist abdullah al-shami has been in custody six months. they are accused of supporting a terrorist organization after interviewing members of the outward muslim brotherhood. al jazeera maintains the journalists were doing their job. the committee to protect journalists puts egypt among the worst countries for freedom of the press. >> egypt's interim government has a responsibility to ensure they are protected. we expressed the concerns to the government of egypt and urged the government to drop the charges and release the journal lifts and academics. >> the rally in london organised by the union for journalist in part in order to present a petition at the embassy calling for the release of journalists. this repress of all journalists

in the country who are operating under outrageous pressure and intimidation calls into question the government's attitude to basic humans rights. this is not local. the push for the journalists release is global. whether it's in east africa, where peter greste is based or his family's pleas to the australian press, or canada, where mohamed fadel fahmy is a dual citizens. >> journalists outside of egypt are standing together. it is good to see that. a reason countries detain journ journalists is to scare other journalists from doing their job. freedom of the press will fall on deaf ears in a country divided.

it is a message to the egyptian government, while they may continue with the trial, the world will be watching. >> we should add many news organization, including bbc and reuters released an open letter asking for the journalists release. >> emotional reunions are getting under way in korea. a group of elderly relatives are getting ready to meet. some have been separated for six decades. >> kim told herself this day would never come. the last 10 spent on a waiting list, she's on her way to north korea. the older sister who pushed her on swings and gave her piggy backs, has died. this is a chance to see her nephew. she'll pass on prized gifts.

>> translation: even if it's just my nephew, i want to give him a hug. i hope we can achieve unification so i can meet him again. >> kim was devastated when north korea pulled out of a reunion days before it was due. just a day after the dates were set for this logistical occupation, north korea was poisoning to pull out. the fact it is going ahead has meant a lot to the elderly meeting their loved ones. >> the aim of the recipients is in the minds of the red cross. many are in poor health. >> translation: 26 in the group are over 90. we have to be careful.

it's more challenging than any other time. that's why there's more accompanying family members. >> kim has taken every step to stay healthy. >> i have taken my motion sickness and blood pressure medicine, i'm excited about meeting my nephew. >> after the years of waiting, it's a few hours before she meets her sister's tonne and pieces together parts of her live. >> this is the first reunion since 2010. 82 south koreans are meeting 180 of their north korean relatives. >> california's government unveiled a nearly $700 million plan. it will be spent on cleaning

water conserves and cleaning of water supplies. >> it's usually a busy time in the south for hauling in fresh seafood. harvesting came to a stop in some places like church point, louisville. we have the story of the claw fish crisis. >> for david, claw fish season is critical. fans await the arrive of the crust airports. louisville produces 90% of the crop. >> thinks look pretty darn good and mother nature threw a kiping. >> the freeze kit the south and claw fish can't flourish. they believe they have lost 60

grand a week. we are running out of days for those craw fish to grow. it gets to a point where they quit growing at a certain temperature. it's the worst i've seen in years. >> it's not for a lack of food, the craw fish are not eating. they are dormant. david said last year he could barely lift the tracks. this year, with this one, he has four. at one of the largest craw fish retailers. this man was buzzled. >> sea food is puzzling. >> last year at the beginning of february we'd sell 150-200 sacks a day. this year we are lucky to get 20 to 30 sacks, maybe every day or a week.

>> they had to call a time out on account of the weather, waiting for a warm up. >> normally we open seven days a week until the end of the season. this year we are picking a day, having a few sacks of craw fish, and just sporadically. >> in the meantime those that crave craw fish need to have patients. >> it's not just frustrating, it's scary, it's unknown, you don't know what will happen, and we will not make up the two months we lost. there's no making it up. >> while some wait out the weather, the crop is crippled. only nature can cure it. >> the craw fish supply takes from april to mid-may. still ahead - a scientific breakthrough from a 20-year-old college stupid - how his research could change the way

some cancer is diagnosed. ♪ what is this place? where are we? this is where we bring together the fastest internet and the best in entertainment. we call it the x1 entertainment operating system.

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>> finland did two things in upsetting russia in the russian quarterfinals, they bounced a favourite and crushed the spirit of the host country so much many feel the winter olympics in sochi are over. russian president vladimir putin all but said the winter games in sochi would be a bust if the meps hockey team did not win gold. not only did they not win the gold, the host country will not medal. the 3-1 victory brought them a date in the finals. the u.s. men's hockey team continues to steam roll through the games, beating the czech republic 5-2, advancing to the semis, where they play canada.

for the women - canada and the u.s. the bitter rivals playing in the gold medal game for the fourth time in five olympics. the u.s. women took two of the three medals. team-mates with the bronze. american ted liggetty struck gold. the 29-year-old, three time defending world champion was at the top of the podium following the giant slalom. that's a look at sport. >> thank you jessica taff. it's 9:26 in the morning. we want to take you to kiev, ukraine, where the truce between government forces and government protesters appear to be strained. we are hearing reports of violence in independence square. as you get a closer look, you can see a number of people carrying away an individual who

has apparently been hurt. you see the fires in the street, and thick black smoke. stay with al jazeera through the morning for the latest in the situation. we will keep you updated. >> facebook is reaching deep into its pocket to reach more users. c.e.o. mark zuckerberg is spending 19,000 in cash and stocks on a service to send text, videos on smart phones. >> it's a trend at college campuses across the country, students are being encouraged to get involved in researchery. allen schauffler introduces us to one such young man. >> on a winter day with the promise of spring brightening the campus, chris will be indoors in the lab solving problems. >> so i made a mick rephelitic

device with curved channels, transporting a tissue. >> translation, he's working on a better way to diagnose pan creatic cancer. traditionally a cancer biopsy involved slicing the tissue, putting it on a slide and viewing it through a microscope. this technology can give pathologists a more complete spinning view. something that can tell them more about what is happening. chris is 20 in his third year of college, he's serving an educational apprenticeship. with the help of federal grants students and teachers are paired for one on you're mentoring. chris has part-time pay and works with dr ronny dawes, who says he is learning two. >> it's awesome.

i have my way of doing things, it doesn't translate well. when you have the right mix, it works out well. >> this collaboration is a growing trend, giving undergraduates a hands-on lab time. it's valuable experience for the next level of education and career competition. here undergraduate research doubled in the last five years. the nonprofit council on undergraduate research has seen membership triple. >> in kress's case he's running hard. teachers say his work on tissue and analysis is ground breaking. the technology he developed, worth patterning. >> nobody demonstrated what chris demonstrated. that's a reason we filed the patent. >> he gives credit to his mentors and time in the lab for

what could be a significant breakthrough. >> to watch the devices go out and learn no one else has done it is exciting. >> the excitement more undergraduates are getting a chance to experience. you're in t "th "the stream." for those in school, tuition is really high, and the jobs that will pay those loans are scarce. what is the decline of the legal industry and what does it mean when you need a lawyer?